On Friday night, I went to see Genève-Servette host Davos at their home patinoire. We arrived after a delightful and gustatory dinner at Aviation, a Geneva steakhouse, to find the home team training by two goals at the end of the first period. We grabbed some empty seats -- accidentally not our own -- in the VIP bleachers and sat down to enjoy the miracle on ice that is hockey.
The crowd was undeniably Swiss -- wine cups in hand and sausage on their laps -- but the music was, as always, American. From Queen's We Will Rock You to Aretha Franklin's Respect, it could have been any American hockey match. The music suitably pumped me up, with the exception of their choice of music following a home goal: Final Countdown -- all I could picture was Job prancing around before the finale of one of his magician's, excuse me illusionist's, acts.
It's often said that the Genevois are a staid and dispassionate people. If you see them at the Lake Parade or a hockey match, however, you will see their wilder, looser sides. The crowd was clapping, roaring, and exalting with every slap in favor of the red and gold. There was even a large section behind one goal with a drum and elaborate clapping cheers -- replete with hand motions that were disturbingly similar to those one might find at the Nuremberg Rallies.
In the end, the Eagles tied the score at 2-2 in the final minutes of the third period and scored the first goal in overtime to win 3-2. The crowd was jubilant and threw streams of crepe paper onto the ice. In all, it was a good night.
Some observations:
* There is no slashing or checking, it seems, in this league, and the fouls were low-key, if penalized appropriately.
* The cheerleaders -- yes, there were hockey cheerleaders -- were clad in typical garb, except for their feet: ever practical, they wore boots.
* The mascot is an Eagle named Calvin, love it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment